OUR TEAM
Native Americans for Restorative Stewardship is based in a triad partnership that began in Humboldt State University within the Native American Studies department in 2013. Caligiuri, Perera, and Siaosi developed their undergrads together, they share advisors, mentors, and student clubs. The three worked together with the greater Humboldt Native community, Native American Student body and allies to form a social justice movement focused on promoting collegiate Indian Education. The team incorporated the Indigenization of education, participated in administrative negotiations and education, implemented social justice tactics, media outreach, and intercollegiate networking with Stanford University, Sacramento State University, UC Davis, and Dartmouth University. All three were inspired by their educational environment to pursue higher education in Federal Indian Law. Caligiuri, Perera, and Siaosi went on to attend the MJIL program at University Tulsa School of Law and earned their Masters of Jurisprudence in Indian Law.
Sarah Caligiuri is a Western Shoshone (Noowuh) enrolled member of the Yomba Shoshone Tribe and Weumpia Diccua from Big Smoky Valley. Sarah has worked with several communities during the last 30 years. Her areas of service include environmental protection, social justice movements, Tribal educational activism, and reproductive justice work. Often her projects work in partnership with Tribal governments, Tribal communities, and federal, state, and county government agencies.
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Sarah is a student in an Individually Designed Phd Educational Studies program at Lesley University, her dissertation focuses on “Healing Education for Western Shoshone; A Philosophical and Practical Model Centering the Western Shoshone Pedagogy.” She has a Master of Jurisprudence in Indian Law from the University of Tulsa School of Law and a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Native American Studies from Humboldt State University.
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Sarah is the Co-Founder of Native Americans for Restorative Stewardship (NARS) LLC. and she is on the Noowuh Knowledge Center Board of Directors. She teaches for the Justice Studies Department at San Jose State University. Sarah has a certificate in Permaculture from the Occidental Arts & Ecology Center and is committed to cultivating Noowuh traditional foods. She is also a writer, artist, and musician. She resides in traditional Shasta Indian territory with her family.
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Andrew Perera is a Law & Policy expert focused on federal Indian Law in the United States. He holds a Doctor of Law and Policy from Northeastern University. This professional doctorate is intended to create individuals with the academic and professional skills to develop, evaluate, and analyze law and policy in the United States. Andrew’s most recent research was titled, "Treaties, Trust Doctrine, and Access Issues Within the Indian Self-Determination Act of 1975: a New Methodology for Evaluating Statutes."
He enlisted in the USMC in 2006 with a Reconnaissance contract and deployed as an Infantryman in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom in Al Anbar Province, Iraq, in the area from Al Qaim to Hit along the Euphrates River. Following the end of his enlistment, Andrew enrolled in university and graduated with a BA in Religious Studies from Cal Poly Humboldt (then known as HSU). Throughout his undergraduate studies, he participated in and led grassroots political and social activism surrounding Indigenous students' rights which resulted in successfully achieving goals through negotiation.
Andrew then attended the University of Tulsa, College of Law, and earned his Master of Jurisprudence focusing on Indian Law. His master's thesis was on “The UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous People and its Compatibility with and Incorporation into Federal Indian Law”.
After working in Tribal government administration as a Tribal Administrator and co-founding a consulting firm, Andrew began teaching in SJSU's Justice Studies Department in 2021 and has taught Legal Studies, a Special Topics class on jurisdiction in Indian country, Race, Gender, Inequality, and the Law, Criminology Applied Thesis Projects, and International Human Rights.
Andrew lives in Washington State on his ranch with his wife Robin, and our sons, Archer - 7, and Castellan - 3. Andrew has practiced martial arts for 31 years and surfed for 20 years before moving inland to their current residence in Eastern Washington.
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Megan Siaosi is a Cahuilla woman who promotes Tribal sovereignty through consulting with Tribal Nations to strengthen and develop their government and judicial systems. Megan is passionate about aligning traditional justice with modern justice systems to best serve the communities they represent. As a professional, she dedicates the values of the Nations she collaborates with; integrity, respect, and commitment.
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Megan holds her Master Degree in Jurisprudence of Indian Law; received her Bachelor's Degree in Native American Studies with an emphasis on Tribal Law and Government; and is a certified Paralegal. Megan has worked in Tribal Judicial Systems the last nine years and is currently the Tribal Court Director for the Bear River Band of the Rohnerville Rancheria, overseeing four federal grants and managing budgets. Prior to working in Tribal Courts, Megan worked as a Rape Crisis Advocate, specializing in providing age appropriate prevention education, crisis counseling, and court advocacy/accompaniment to survivors of sexual assault. Over the years she has completed various training/certifications to enhance her job performance, including but not limited to an Advanced Tribal Clerk Certification, Government-to-Government Negotiation Training, 72-hour Crisis Counseling Training, and a 40-hour Domestic Violence Advocate Training Course.
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Megan has served as Board Secretary on the Northern California Tribal Court Coalition for two years, a non-profit organization that promotes and strengthens Tribal Justice Systems to restore balance and order in our communities, while honoring sovereignty and cultural values. Megan is a Co-founder and Senior Consultant for Native Americans for Restorative Stewardship, LLC. (NARS), a consulting firm that aims to promote social responsibility towards earth healing and community wellness for all life through a Native American led Indigenous lens. She intends to dedicate her life to provide Indigenous Peoples with access to justice and to close the jurisdictional gaps that exist within Indian Country.
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Abeytax Barana is a descendant of the Taino and Arawakan people of what are now called the Caribbean islands. Antonio is a Certified Professional Life Coach, Motivational Speaker, Educational Content Creator and a DEIB Strategies Consultant based in Portland Oregon . With their specialty in Implicit Bias training, Nonviolent Communication and Mindset Coaching Antonio guides and coaches teams through the process of changing company culture in meaningful ways with long term impact.
Project Lead Consultant
& DEIB Strategies Coach
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Bernadette Forrest is Pit River, Tolowa Dee-ni', and Modoc. She is a NARS Tribal Housing Consultant for the AHP & BHBH Tribal RFA Project. Her expertise is in Low Income Rentals, Lease to Purchase First Time Home Buyers, Elder Housing, Tribal HUD Section 8, Tribal Social Service Coordination, Financial Educator, First Time Home Buyer Educator, Mediation Training, Cross Cultural Communication & Negotiation Skills & Processes.
NARS Consultant,
Tribal Housing
NARS Consultant
Fernanda Ferrell-Zabala was born in Quito, Ecuador and is a descendant of the Quichua Runa. Living as a queer undocumented person in the United States helped shape Fernanda’s passion for fighting injustice and promoting equity.
Fernanda currently serves as the Branding and Marketing Manager for her family’s hurricane protection company where she has successfully led the company through a rebrand and strategic direction implementation.
Her experience spans from virtual event production and logistics to strategic planning, implementation, and marketing. Fernanda has previously worked with prominent clients like The Movement for Black Lives and State Voices. Prior to joining the world of advocacy, Fernanda spent over 15 years as an Aerospace Engineer at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center and brings with her a unique approach to problem solving. Fernanda has always believed that knowledge is the most powerful tool and has volunteered with many organizations to teach and inspire Black and Brown girls in STEM related fields.
Fernanda calls Washington DC home where she lives, works, and marches for progressive causes along with her wife Angela and their four kids.